EAST AFRICA. 



251 



pcrial Government, and placed under tlie control 

 of the consul general at Zanzibar. On Aug. >!. 

 is'.iti. a decree was published placing: under a single 

 administration all the British territories in Ka-t 

 Africa except the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba. 

 and the Uganda protectorate. This Ka-t African 

 protectorate includes the territories bounded on the 

 north by the river Juba, on the east by the Indian 

 Ocean, on the south by the German sphere, and on 

 the west by the Uganda protectorate, and also all 

 adjacent islands between the mouths of the rivers 

 Juba and Umba. 



Zanzibar. The island of Zanzibar has an area 

 of 625 square miles, with about 150.000 inhabitants. 

 Peinba. where Arab proprietors cultivate cloves by 

 slave labor, has an area of 360 square miles and 

 ."ii I.HIM) inhabitants. In the town of Zanzibar are 

 about 50 Englishmen and 50 Germans engaged in 

 trading, and some American. French, Italian. 

 Greek, and Roumanian traders besides, but the bulk 

 of the trade of East Africa is conducted by the 

 Banian merchant caste of India, of which there are 

 about 7,000 representatives in Zanzibar. The 

 sultans of Zanzibar derived a considerable revenue 

 from customs duties and taxes on clover and other 

 products. Under the British protectorate all the 

 revenues are taken out of the hands of the Sultan 

 and his court officials, and he receives instead a 

 privy purse of about two lakhs of rupees. There is 

 a regular army of 1,000 men, including police, which 

 is commanded by Gen. G. P. Hatch. The commerce 

 of 1894 amounted to 1.197.681 for imports and 

 !.< 196.240 for exports. Of the imports, 219,746 

 came from German East Africa. 177.171 from the 

 Sultan's dominions, 47.309 from British East 

 Africa, 31.183 from Benadir, and 722.212 from 

 foreign countries. The chief exports were : Ivory. 

 152.181; cloves, 138,859 ; copra, 25.697: rubber, 

 21.022: gums, 12.807: hides, 6.002: chillies, 

 5,083. The imports in 1895 amounted to 1.2!i:j.- 

 646. The chief importing country is British India, 

 whence are brought piece goods, rice, and specie. 

 Among European countries Great Britain takes 

 the first place, but the imports from that country 

 show a decline, especially in piece goods and hard- 

 ware, owing to the competition of other countries. 

 The most important article of import into Zanzibar 

 is cotton cloth, of which all importing countries 

 showed an increased trade excepting England, 

 whose imports of piece goods declined 25 per cent. 

 The most important class of piece goods is the gray 

 cloth that in certain parts of Africa forms the only 

 currency. The best part of this trade is obtained 

 by the United States, whose goods were first in the 

 field, and are superior to any furnished by Man- 

 chester at the same price, being free from sizing, 

 unshrinkable, stouter than English cloth, and of 

 more uniform weight. Dutch and German prints, 

 Belgian iron goods, and French brass wire are sup- 

 planting the English products. During 1894 the 

 trading vessels calling at Zanzibar numbered 126. 

 of which 44. of 71,235 tons, were English, 46. of 66,- 

 v( i'J tons. German, and 28, of 47.776 tons. French. 

 The Maria Theresa dollars coined in Zanzibar are 

 the standard currency. Indian rupees are current 

 at the rate of 47 cents for the rupee, and are the 

 common money. 



Seyyid Hamed bin Thwain was placed on the 

 throne on the death of Seyyid AH on March 5. 1893, 

 having been selected from among several claimants 

 as the one most amenable to British control. His 

 cousin Khalid, son of the Sultan Barghash. who 

 was the choice of the Arabs, after his claims had 

 been rejected by the English agent. Rennell Rodd. 

 planned to seize the throne in defiance of British 

 wishes, but his designs were frustrated. Seyyid 

 Hamid bin Thwain died suddenly on Aug. 25, 1896. 



.Xeyyid Khalid bin Barghash proceeded at once to 

 the palai-c. and. disregarding the orders of Basil S. 

 Cave, the acting British agent, and Sir Llovd 

 Mathews. took command of the deceased Sultan's 

 bodyguard and other Arabs and retainers, who 

 flocked to his support all fully armed, ('apt. Saleh, 

 commander of the palace guard, had the guns pre- 

 seiit'-d by the German Emperor and others so 

 planted as to command each entrance to the palace 

 square. Meanwhile the British commander called 

 together his uxktiriy and summoned aid from the 

 British ships of war "Philomel" and "Thrush." 

 which landed 150 marines. The Arab.- arrayed in 

 the palace square numbered 2.500. all ready armed. 

 and with field guns and Maxims loaded for action. 

 After they had buried the late Sultan. Seyyid Kha- 

 lid, in defiance of the messages of Mr. Cave, who 

 warned him that it would be an act of rebellion 

 against the protecting power, proclaimed himself 

 Sultan and raised his flag, while guns fired a royal 

 salute. The British war ships took their station 

 opposite the palace, while the acting diplomatic 

 agent waited for instructions frorii Lord Salisbury. 

 (ither British war vessels arrived opportunely, in- 

 creasing the naval force and the troops landed for 

 the protection of the British in the city, which con- 

 sisted of 550 marines and sailors with guns, and 700 

 native troop-. 



On receiving a reply from London leaving the 

 authorities on the spot free to act according to 

 their own discretion. Admiral Rawson conferred 

 with emissaries of the usurping Sultan, and when 

 the latter refused to leave the palace, sent him an 

 ultimatum stating that if he did not haul down his 

 flag and evacuate the palace before nine o'clock the 

 next morning. Aug. 27, the palace would be bom- 

 barded. The ultimatum was renewed in the morn- 

 ing, and when Khalid still refused to capitulate the 

 "Racoon," "Thrush," and "Sparrow" fired on the 

 palace. The Arabs made an ineffectual defense 

 with their guns in the palace and the old brass 

 guns of the " Glasgow and two small steam 

 launches. The Arabs fought pluckily until the 

 palace was a heap of ruins. The bombardment 

 lasted fifty minutes. Seyyid Khalid's followers 

 even then contested the position from behind their 

 barricades, keeping up a steady fire on the British 

 marines and Indian soldiers till the position was 

 carried. Seyyid Khalid, when the British took 

 possession of the town, escaped from them by tak- 

 ing refuge in the German consulate. Many of the 

 leading Arabs fought on Khalid's side. Of 3.000 

 persons who were in the palace when it was bom- 

 barded 500 were killed or wounded. During the 

 disturbance there was much looting of property, 

 and many Indians were murdered. The same after- 

 noon the British officials had Seyyid Hamud bin 

 Mahomed proclaimed Sultan. The Sultan's guns 

 were taken away by the British cruiser " St. George," 

 and the palace askorin were disbanded. Many of 

 Khalid's adherents escaped to the mainland or neigh- 

 boring islands. The British consul general re- 

 quested the German consul to deliver over Khalid 

 and the leading Arabs who had sought an asylum 

 in the German consulate. As the consulate and 

 other German property in Zanzibar possess the at- 

 tribute of exterritoriality under the treaty made 

 by Germany with the Sultan of Zanzibar in 1885, 

 and as the extradition treaty between Germany and 

 Great Britain declares that offenses of a political 

 character are not extraditable, and that a fugitive 

 shall not be extradited if the real object of the de- 

 mand for his extradition is to prosecute or punish 

 him for a misdemeanor or crime of apolitical nature, 

 the German Government discussed with the Eng- 

 lish Foreign Office the question of handing over 

 Khalid on condition that he should be treated as a 



